ARID AGRICULTURE. 293 



mounds, until you strike the burrow. Then 

 drop in the grain or other poisoned bait. 



BABBITS The injury by rabbits outside of merely eat- 



ing crops and forage, is mainly confined to 

 gnawing the bark of young trees, especially ap- 

 ples. Numerous suggestions have been made 

 about the use of some liquid or paint to protect 

 trees from rabbits. 'None of these are very ef- 

 fectual preventatives. There are two methods 

 to pursue outside of destroying the rabbits. One 

 is the use of rabbit-proof fence. Woven wire 

 fence with two-inch mesh and eighteen or twenty 

 inches high will keep out cottontails and jack- 

 rabbits. The fence should be placed three or 

 four inches under ground by plowing a furrow 

 and at the bottom lay a galvanized barbwire with 

 as close barbs as you can obtain. Individual tree 

 protectors of wire or thin wood are useful and 

 the wood ones are protection against the winds 

 and bright sunshine as well. Rabbits may be 

 easily and successfully trapped. The Wellhouse 

 trap, consisting of a dark box six inches square 

 and 20 inches long, with a trap door in front, 

 held up by a wire inside, with a loop hanging- 

 down in the back of the box for the rabbit to push 

 against to let the door down and shut himself in, 

 is one of the cheapest and best traps. ~No bait is 

 used and the rabbit merely runs into the trap to 

 hide. Don't forget to visit the traps and take 

 the rabbits out before they suffer or die of hun- 

 ger. 



